Ruth Webber (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise tonight to speak about the passing of a great Western Australian and Labor Party member, the Hon. Tom Butler. It is fitting that I speak about him in this place, as very often the things that were important to Tom—or Tommy, as many called him—were debated vigorously and passionately right here. While sad, his passing should not be marked purely by sorrow. He was a man of significant accomplishment, a man whose achievements were buoyed by a fundamental sense of optimism and a genuine love of the people he represented. Accordingly, the West Australian branch of the Labor Party should not let grief obfuscate the tremendous work Tom undertook for the community over the years.

Tom first became involved in the labour movement through his time as a painter. He started his apprenticeship in 1945 and worked as a tradesman until 1963, when he became a union organiser with the Painters and Decorators Union. As early as 1955 he held office at a branch level within the Labor Party. Like many great Labor stalwarts, I know that Tom carried his experience as a worker with him throughout his career. Like the strongest of Labor advocates, his bedrock was his own experience; his political nous came from a strong sense of empathy.

However, those of my colleagues who knew Tom would agree that this empathy did not get in the way of Tom’s tough political instincts. When I first moved to Western Australia—from Canberra, of all places—in 1986, Tom was president of the state branch at the time. State executive meetings back then were far more volatile than they are today. I remember my first few meetings in my new home state. Tom’s fortitude in chairing those meetings—for 10 years, no less—demonstrated his ability to dig in when the situation required it. Indeed, I remember, as I am sure both the Labor leader here and the Leader of the Opposition do, one particular volatile meeting where a member disagreed with one of Tom’s rulings and decided to throw a chair at him.

It is difficult to talk about Tommy without talking about the political aspect of his life. For Tom, as for many of us, devotion to political goals was very much entwined with who he was. Tom did not treat his obligations as a unionist or parliamentarian as just a day job. Tom’s political progression is a testament to the close bonds between the union movement and the Labor Party. Tom remained an organiser with the painters and decorators until 1971, when he became secretary of that union.

A Labor member of the WA state parliament, now president of the WA upper house, Nick Griffiths, told a story about Tom recently. Nick recalled that, at various times, Tom was required at ALP national executive meetings. During the 1970s, those meetings were often frequented by people of the calibre of Whitlam and Hawke. At the end of one of Tom’s first meetings at the highest level, one of the two future prime ministers inquired about who this Tom fellow was. This in itself is not indicative of Tom but, as Nick recalls, it was Tom himself who told the story—an act of quiet humility and humour that was very much indicative of the man.

Tom held the position of secretary of his union until 1983, when he became an advisor to the then state Minister for Industrial Relations, Peter Dowding. It is fitting that Tom worked in such a role, as the issue of industrial relations was a primary passion of his. In 1986, Tom was elected to the WA upper house as the member for North-East Metropolitan Province and, later, the East Metropolitan Region. Both of those electorates contained some of the most working-class areas of metropolitan Perth at that time, so Tom felt right at home working as a parliamentarian. Indeed, as he said in his first speech in state parliament:

I can think of no better training ground for a member of Parliament than to serve as a trade union official, because a union official serves a demanding constituency and deals on a daily basis with a multitude of problems which go far beyond what we would normally define as industrial in nature.

Tom was right insofar as, thematically, his work did not change; he was simply charged with caring for a far larger group of people in his new role. It granted him the opportunity to help different groups of people, particularly those below the legal working age. He spent considerable time and effort ensuring that community services like the Lockridge youth service could get off the ground and stay viable for years to come. Tom’s work is indeed proof of his belief in giving working-class kids every opportunity to improve their station in life.

Politically, Tom was someone to be reckoned with. He sidestepped rigid factionalism in the ALP after its embryonic phase in the early 1980s. I am sure people on both sides of this chamber can appreciate the skill and strength required to progress successfully in politics without those rigid formal arrangements. In modern Western Australian politics, some similarly independent members of parliament come to mind, including our current premier, Alan Carpenter. Clearly, Tom’s chosen path is one opted for by the most savvy of politicians.

Ideologically, Tom’s views on industrial relations are far more important today than ever before. I have no concern about politicising a speech regarding Tom’s passing, as Tom himself would be sorely disappointed if I did not take the opportunity to chastise the Prime Minister for his attitude towards the union movement. Unions are facing their biggest challenge in Australian history. The government has made a point of removing basic safeguards that people like Tom fought their whole lives to codify in law. Those of us who knew Tom recall his passion for workers’ rights fondly, and harness the same passion ourselves to continue fighting the blind determination and obsession of conservative parties and unscrupulous businesses.

Tom was a successful unionist and politician for the same reason he was a well-liked person. He understood that people have to overcome challenges every day. Tom empathised with hardworking, everyday people, who often struggle to make ends meet at home. His determination and compassion are sentiments which both lie very close to the heart of the ALP as an organisation. I extend my deepest sympathies to Tom’s family, and assure them that his contributions to the community will never be forgotten. As I said earlier, I believe Tom should be remembered for his actions. Therefore I thought I would leave the last word to Tom, and quote once more from his first speech in the WA state parliament. He said:

Rank and file unionists see their elected representatives as a source of advice and assistance on all matters, as our constituents view us, their elected parliamentary representatives. In making the transition, therefore, from an official of the Painters and Decorators Union to the member for a large, predominantly “working class” electorate, I am extending and building upon a lifetime’s work.

It was a lifetime well lived.